The invention relates to apparatus to prevent splash and spatter of bodily fluids on health care workers in dentistry and other medical fields.
Prior art devices have either been uncomfortable, bulky, obtrusive, costly, difficult to adjust, or difficult to clean and sterilize. New OSHA regulations require that chin length face shields be used by those that may be exposed to the splash or spatter of bodily fluids as may occur in the dental or medical field.
Extensive cleaning and sterilization procedures are required to prevent contamination that further increases the cost of health care. The use of disposable products in medical facilities is increasing because it is less expensive, in many cases, to replace a low cost product than incur the cost of labor for cleaning and sterilization.
Frequently, a doctor may need to wear magnifying lens or other attachments to his glasses during certain procedures that interfere with conventional face shield use. This is a major design consideration.
The prior art structures include U.S. Pat. No. 4,965,887 having a joint inventor that is the same as the present invention. While the apparatus described in that patent is useful for many applications it and other prior art suffers from the following disadvantages:
1. The clips are discarded with the shield which is wasteful and results in a poor use of natural resources. PA1 2. The cost is very high because of the waste of material and the high labor content. PA1 3. The present shields are limited in adjustment in their present form to horizontal adjustment along the temple members of a frame. PA1 4. Each time a typical prior art shield is washed, sterilized and placed back on the wearer's glasses the mounting brackets have to be adjusted. This is particularly significant when the health care professional visits a number of patients. When the brackets are adjusted improperly, as could happen if the wearer were to hurry, the shield may be installed in a crooked position and may not provide proper protection. PA1 5. The present face protection devices are very difficult to clean and sterilize when the user goes from patient to patient. The new OSHA guidelines for those exposed to bodily fluids such as might occur in dentistry and the medical field, require frequent changing of face shields. Disposable shields are being required in more and more medical procedures because of the high cost and time required for proper cleaning and sterilizing for contamination prevention between patients. PA1 6. The present face shield devices are not practical to recycle as they contain combinations of different materials such as plastics and metal. PA1 7. Prior art apparatus commonly uses head covers for added protection along with greater side protection at the eye area. Replacing head covers and face shields between patients creates an expensive practice with first cost, installation and adjustment cost, washing and sterilization cost and administration cost. PA1 8. When magnifying lens, loops or other attachments are used with the doctors glasses, conventional face shields cannot be used.